FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Seventy-three University of Arkansas student-athletes were selected to the Southeastern Conference Spring Academic Honor Roll, the league announced Tuesday.
Razorback track and field led the Arkansas’ selections with 36 student-athletes honored. Thirteen softball players earned selection to the list along with six members for both baseball and men’s golf. Five women golfers, four men’s tennis players, and three women’s tennis players were also honored on the spring academic honor roll.
To be selected, a student-athlete must have a grade point average of 3.0 or above for either the previous academic year or have a cumulative GPA of 3.0 at the nominating institution. The student-athlete must have completed 24 semester or 36 quarter hours of credit toward a degree.
Getting it done in the classroom and in the arena is nothing new to Razorbacks head women’s cross country, track and field coach Lance Harter. After a successful fall that included the SEC title and a fifth place finish at the NCAA Championship, Harter and the Razorbacks made program history winning the first NCAA Championship during the indoor season. The Razorbacks paired that with an SEC title and added the SEC outdoor victory to complete the Triple Crown.
Senior Sandi Morris along with men’s track and field stars Nathanael Franks and Andrew Pisechko, all earned Capital One Academic All-America honors this year.
The women’s track and field national championship highlighted a spring season of success for the Razorbacks. Arkansas posted a program-best 16th-place finish in the Learfield Sports Director’s Cup standings behind NCAA Championship appearances from men’s and women’s golf, baseball, women’s tennis and men’s and women’s track and field.
Dave Van Horn paced the Razorbacks baseball team to the College World Series for the third time in the last seven seasons after winning a NCAA Regional and an NCAA Super Regional this year. The success rode on the shoulders of Andrew Benintendi who won four national player of the year awards this season.
The third-place finish at the NCAA Outdoor Championship was the fifth consecutive top-10 national outdoor finish for the Razorbacks. Jarrion Lawson and Omar McLeod who led the group scoring in multiple events while Kenzo Cotton earned Co-Freshman Runner of the Year honors.
The Razorback men’s golf team finished sixth place at the SEC Championships and earned its eighth straight NCAA Regional berth under head coach Brad McMakin. The women’s team earned the program’s first No.1 national ranking, finished third at the NCAA Regional and ninth at the NCAA Championship behind Gabriela Lopez’s runner-up finish in stroke play.
The selections cap off a successful year in the classroom in which Arkansas had 16 teams earn a 3.00 grade point average or better for the fall semester.
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